Sorry Doesn't Cut It
by PromiseMeTheStars
Summary: When James accidentally kills Carlos' pet goldfish, he has a hard time being forgiven. No slash, just a little fluff for Jarlos lovers.


**x Read, please? x**

**I haven't really posted anything on here in awhile, and this idea has been just stuck in my head. Basically the boys are around 10-11 years old, and in 5th grade I believe. **

**~Also a big thank you to squoctobird, my lovely new beta! I probably wouldn't have wrote this if we didn't have that talk, so this one is for you! And another thank you to Clarry, for helping me think of a name for this. :) I'll shut up now, haha. **

**xxx**

"Ooh! And there's this one, James! I just got it!" Carlos said proudly as he held up a the latest Spider-Man comic book. Sadly, his tall brunette friend didn't seem too interested.

Instead he was leaning somewhat close to a nearby fishbowl, trying to comb his hair in the reflection.

"James, you're gonna scare Batman," the shorter boy stated cautiously, earning an eye roll from James.

"Who names a fish Batman? That's kinda lame." James snickered as he moved the bowl a little to get a better angle.

Carlos frowned, "My dad thought it was cool. Now stop messing with him."

"Whatever. I'm thirsty, can you get us some soda?" his friend whined.

"Fine. But if you need to comb your 'precious' hair, just go to the bathroom," Carlos reminded him as he left the room.

James continued to move the bowl a little bit more, not at all listening to his friend. His comb slipped out of his hands and onto the floor. He groaned at the thought of actually having to bend over and pick it up.

While standing up, his hip bumped into the night stand the fishbowl rested on and it came crashing onto the floor.

His eyes widened as he bent down, desperately trying to pick up the fish and put it in some water quickly. There was glass everywhere and the fish was no longer moving.

He heard a small gasp from across the room and knew exactly who it was.

"...how could you?" Carlos managed to whisper.

James stood up and shrugged. "Carlos, it's just a fish. You got it a month ago. Big deal."

The shorter boy glared, obviously offended by him.

"It's my first pet! You know it's a 'big deal' to me!"

"Well, I'm sorry, okay? Now, c'mon. Let's go play that new video game I just got at my house."

"No." Carlos crossed his arms.

"What do you mean 'no'? It's a stupid fish!"

James calmed down as he saw tears well up in the shorter boy's eyes.

"Carlos I..."

"Go home, James."

"I-"

"Now!"

All he could do was nod, feeling like the biggest jerk alive, and go home.

**xxx**

"Dude. You made Carlos cry?" Kendall asked as he walked with James to school.

"I guess so. He shouldn't have been so sensitive. He must've been a girl in his past life." James looked down at his feet as he walked in a puddle.

"Oh, shut up. You know Carlos is sensitive. It's just in his nature," the blonde said nudging his friend.

James nudged his friend back. "Yeah, but crying over a fish? Come on, Kendall. That's ridiculous."

"Would you cry over your lucky comb if I snapped it in half?"

The brunette's eyes widened and he clung to his comb.

"Exactly."

"Well, what am I supposed to do?"

"I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure Carlos is probably over it by now." Kendall shrugged.

"You think so?" James looked over at him.

"He's Carlos. And you're his best friend."

"But we're all best friends, Kendall."

Kendall smiled at the thought. "Yeah, we are, but you two have a special relationship though. Fights never last long when it comes to you guys. I'm sure he's already gotten over it."

**xxx**

Unfortunately, Kendall was wrong.

All throughout the day, Carlos didn't say one word to him, not even at recess when the four were hanging out by the basketball courts. Or when they were doing a history activity during class and James was supposed to be his partner. Carlos went up to their teacher asked for a different one. That hurt James the most.

When lunch came, James couldn't take it much longer.

They sat at their usual table, surrounded by some other friends, but Carlos didn't take his usual seat next to James. Instead, he sat next to Kendall.

Logan sensed the awkwardness and spoke up. "A-Are you two alright? Especially you, Carlos. I haven't heard a word from you all day. And that's really weird... since it's... well... you."

"I'm fine," Carlos mumbled as he opened his lunch sack.

"But you're not sitting next to James. You always do." Logan stated, looking from Carlos to James.

Carlos ignored that comment and turned to Kendall.

"So did you see the hockey game last night?"

Kendall smiled. "Yeah! The Maple Leafs won six to four. It was awesome!"

James listened in on their small talk, waiting for a chance to jump in and talk to Carlos. He began eating his lunch and realized he had something that was his friend's favorite.

"Hey, Carlos." James smiled, "I have some fruit smackers. Want them?"

He could tell Carlos was trying so hard not to say yes, or in fact, say any word at all.

Carlos shook his head and returned to the conversation he was having with Kendall. Sighing, James decided to give up. He didn't think their friendship would ever end over a fish, but just thinking about it made him frown.

The day continued on until the bell rang and the four packed up their stuff getting ready for the usual walk home.

"Kendall, Logan, aren't you guys coming?" Carlos asked as he stood a couple inches away from James.

"Actually, I gotta go to hockey practice early to help out, and Logan has an eye doctor appointment, so his mom is giving me a ride." Kendall smiled as he held up his duffel back full of hockey gear.

"You still have James."

"Oh, great." Carlos mumbled under his breath as he waved to his friends and started the walk home.

By the time James looked over to see Carlos, the shorter boy was already halfway down the block. He rolled his eyes and ran after him.

"C-Carlos! Wait up!" he shouted and stopped next to his friend, trying to catch his breath.

"J-Just talk to me. Please," James pleaded as he started to calm down from the sprint.

Not a peep from Carlos, he was just looking ahead.

"What did I do?"

Carlos snapped his head over and glared over at him.

"Okay, besides accidentally killing your fish. Which! I apologized for! Isn't that good enough?" James looked away and sighed.

"No."

He turned to face him again.

"You didn't mean it." Carlos frowned.

"Well, what I'm I supposed to do? Get on my hands and knees and kiss your feet? Carlos, I don't mean to say this in any harsh way, but it's just a fish! They cost like five bucks at the pet store."

"But I saved up my own money to get everything for it! You know I don't get allowance, I worked really hard doing chores for my neighbors." Carlos sighed, shaking his head as he walked up to the front of his house. He could hear his younger siblings making a huge amount of noise inside.

"I'm sorry. Alright?"

"Just... forget it." The shorter boy walked away and into his house.

**xxx**

Thankfully, the next day it was Saturday. Carlos slept in until he was woken up by his younger brother.

He sighed while lazily shooing his brother away with his hand.

"Go away, Antonio." Carlos sigh and rubbed his eyes, wanting to go back to sleep.

His younger brother pouted and tugged on his shirt.

"James is here!"

"Tell him to go away."

"That's not very nice."

Carlos sighed again, and sat up.

"I'll be down in a minute..."

His little brother nodded and ran out of the room.

After Carlos was somewhat awake, he headed downstairs to find James sitting on the couch with a box with a few holes on his lap. He raised an eyebrow, wondering what it could be.

"Hey." James smiled over at him. "I have something for you."

"Look, if it's another fish-" Carlos started to protest, but James cut him off.

"It's not a fish..." The brunette smiled.

A little whine came from the box as James opened it. Carlos stepped closer.

The head of a beagle puppy, no older than 12 weeks old, popped out.

Carlos' eyes widened. "Y-You got me a puppy?"

James nodded. "Mhm! Your parent's told me it was okay too."

"That's a pretty big apology gift for a fish, though." Carlos picked up the puppy and smiled.

"It's not only for that... but for me being a jerk." James stood up and looked at him with a sincere smile on his face. "Besides... I thought this was a better pet than a fish."

Carlos chuckled and held the puppy close.

"Is it a girl or boy?" he asked.

"Boy. I figured a girl dog would be emotional like you. We only need one Carlos." James laughed a little, only to receive a playful shove from his friend.

An excited gasp came from the staircase and they both looked over.

"We're getting a puppy!" Antonio yelled with pure excitement.

"Yeah, we are," Carlos said smiling and set the puppy down on the carpet. Wanna help us think of a name?"

He nodded and sat down next to it. The three stayed in a comfortable silence thinking of names.

"How about Spider-Man?" Carlos asked, "Since Batman died."

"Now, that's one request I have." James smirked, "No superhero names."

"That's no fun though."

"Oh well."

More silence followed after that until Antonio spoke up.

"How about... Sparky?" He looked up at them.

James and Carlos looked at each other and nodded.

"That could work." The tallest boy smiled.

"Agreed. I like it!" Carlos high-fived his brother, and looked over at James.

"Thank you."

The brunette shrugged. "It's nothing, really."

"No, seriously. Thank you." Carlos smiled and hugged him tightly.

James hugged back just as tight, "That's what best friends are for."


End file.
